In light of the unprecedented coronavirus pandemic, businesses around the globe have had to endure their fair share of changes over the last year.
From overwhelming numbers of staff redundancies to the need to implement remote working processes, there have also been the sudden changes in consumer behaviour to contend with, as well as increased concerns over mental health.
In other words, it’s not been an easy year. So, as we move further into 2021, we thought we’d address one of the key concerns many employers will have this year: employee retention. Listed below are some of the most effective ways to keep your staff turnover rate as low as possible, ensuring your employees stay committed, motivated and consistently engaged with their work.
Retain A Healthy Work-Life Balance
Now that most of your workforce will be operating on a remote working basis, it’s important to consider the impact this will have on your employees. Especially if they have kids, expecting your staff to operate on a 9 AM – 5 PM model each day, while retaining 100% attention on their work, is simply unrealistic.
Now, that’s not to say you should let your staff off the hook. But, by loosening the reins a little and easing the pressure on their shoulders, you will make it much easier for them to retain a healthy work-life balance, providing them with the opportunity to work around those day-to-day life commitments that often get in the way.
And in return, you should see a much healthier output in terms of their work. This is because happy employees – staff who feel respected and listened to at their workplace – deliver better results, often going above and beyond as a way of thanking their employer.
Rethink Your Incentives & Compensation
Many businesses will have struggled to stay afloat during the pandemic, let alone earn enough profit to dole out as bonuses. Therefore, rather than sticking to the traditional payment-based incentives, why not rethink the benefits you offer to your employees?
Whether it be an extra day’s worth of holiday allowance, a discounted gym membership, a team bonding day out or an upgraded job title, there are a number of ways to reward your employees for all the hard work they do for you.
If you have staff who had to work throughout the lockdowns, for example, consider the impact those periods will have had on them. Seeing their furloughed colleagues effectively having time off for 80% of their salary could have significantly affected their morale, after all, and if left unrecognised, could limit their desire to stay with you. Therefore, make sure you recognise the extra effort they’ve put in these past few months, by treating your employees on both an individual basis and as a collective unit as well.
And, even if you can’t afford to increase their salary right now, by providing some small way of saying thank you, like offering to pay for their fit-to-fly rapid COVID-19 antigen test before an upcoming holiday, this can help make all the difference.
Hire The Right People
While it may sound fairly obvious, taking your time to hire the right people can make your life a lot easier in the long run. Say, for example, you decide to hire more people than you actually need. This could hugely affect your staff turnover, since there won’t be enough work available to keep all your employees occupied, leaving them bored as a result.
As such, you need to think carefully about your workplace’s hiring process. If a potential candidate impresses you in an interview but lacks the experience required to do the role, don’t just hire them out of kindness.
Especially now we’re in a period of such economic uncertainty, it’s imperative you surround yourself with a team of workers you can trust, respect the opinions of, and enjoy working with. While finding the right balance may be tricky, once you do, your staff will be a lot more loyal to you as a result.
Discuss Career Growth
The end/beginning of the year offers employees an opportunity to reflect on their life, weighing up whether they’re happy with their current situation or not. Therefore, it’s important to recognise this as their employer, and inject yourself into those thought processes.
If an employee feels like they can’t move up the ladder in your company, for example, there is an increased likelihood they’ll want to seek pastures new. In fact, a staggering 80% of people say they would leave a job if they felt there wasn’t enough development opportunity.
As such, it’s important to make career growth a topic of conversation between you and them. Remind them why working for your company is so great and highlight a few training opportunities for them to consider utilising in the new year.
That way, they will be a lot more likely to start the year with a recharged set of batteries, looking forward to working for an employer which recognises their need for personal development.
Photo credits: coworkinglondon.com